Fulton DA speaks with Channel 2 following Young Thug guilty plea in gang trial

ATLANTA — Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis spoke to Channel 2 Action News on Monday about the dramatic conclusion to the gang racketeering case against rapper Young Thug last week.

The Fulton County District Attorney’s Office did reiterate to Channel 2 investigative reporter Mark Winne that the YSL case itself is not over.

“Was it worth all the trouble?” Winne asked Willis.

“It’s always worth the trouble. The reality is as you know I have aggressively prosecuted gang violence and there is no one above or below the law,” Willis said.

Willis says though she did not agree on a deal for a plea with attorneys for Williams, better known as Young Thug, she’s choosing not to publicly voice whether she agrees or disagrees with the sentence handed down by Fulton County Superior Court Judge Paige Reese Whittaker

“Sentencing was in the hands of Judge Whittaker,” Willis said.

Williams entered a non-negotiated plea on Thursday in which he pled guilty to every charge he faced in the YSL case except for two, to which he pled nolo contendere or no contest.

Willis said that is similar to a guilty plea except when it comes to civil lawsuits.

“You poured a lot of resources, took a lot of flack on this case,” Winne told Willis.

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“You shouldn’t be the district attorney if you’re not willing to take flack. The reality is the world has been caught up with one defendant. But we indicted 28 defendants. Fourteen of those defendants are now disposed of cases. We have 14 more defendants to go, and so we are going to continue to pursue justice in that case,” Willis said.

Willis said although Young Thug exited the Fulton County Jail soon after his plea in a car driven by one of his attorneys, he had already done a substantial amount of time in jail while awaiting or going through his trial.

“He’s been in jail three years, so that is not a walk in the park,” Willis said.

She said there is room for accountability in the complicated sentence, involving five years commuted to time served followed by 15 years probation, to be followed by a “backloaded” 20-year prison term, which will also be commuted to time served if he successfully completes the probation, which is loaded with lots of special conditions.

“Hope springs eternal that he will do well because if not, he’s going to land himself in prison for another 20 years,” Willis said.

The DA told Winne that video from gang murder cases unrelated to Williams we reported on last week, underscores that gangs are a major driver of crime here.

Willis’ office said Atlanta police crime stats show some key violent crime categories are down across the city as of Oct. 7, compared to roughly the same time in 2022 and that aggressive prosecution of gang members is a key reason why.

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